Trivalent chromium plating solutions are used to produce deposits that have characteristics that approach that of hexavalent chromium solutions both in terms of color and corrosion resistance from an electrolyte that is much more environmentally friendly. In addition, trivalent chromium solutions can also be formulated to produce pleasing “dark” deposits. Such deposits are often referred to as “black” or “smoke”, but for discussions purposes here will just be referred to as “dark”. These “dark” deposits are generated from solutions of very like chemistries from those used to generate standard deposits, augmented with additives that are sulfur bearing compounds.